SAP Taps 3D Printing for Worldwide Distributed Manufacturing

As 3D printing shifts from a prototyping tool to a production technology, manufacturers will be required to find ways to incorporate additive manufacturing (AM) into their existing workflows. From a logistical standpoint, this means having software and management tools that are capable of handling the wide variety of AM processes used and validating and certifying the parts made with those processes.

For this reason, SAP was primed to take advantage of the burgeoning AM market and launched SAP Distributed Manufacturing to help original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) integrate 3D printing into their supply chains. ENGINEERING.com spoke with SAP Senior Vice President of Digital Assets and IoT, Gil Perez, to understand how the worldwide logistics giant was able to bring AM into mainstream manufacturing.